A strange thing is happening: four years after launch, the PlayStation 4 is selling out – particularly online in the United States. To be clear, if you had planned on getting Sony’s system this week, then you’ll probably find plenty of stock in store – assuming you’re willing to fight for it – but the heavily advertised $199 consoles have all but evaporated on Amazon, Best Buy, Target, and Wal Mart’s websites. Not even GameStop has any stock online – although it seems the device is available in store.

Credit where credit’s due, the platform holder’s played a blinder this year: by lowering the price all week in America and heavily promoting the discount, it’s given shoppers the convenience of simply picking the cheap and cheerful console up before all of the Black Friday madness even begins. The stock issues suggest that it may have underestimated demand – or simply hit its targets for the promotion. Either way, seeing the PS4 out of stock this long after launch is kinda crazy.

@Rudy_Manchego Well everyone thought last year was peak PS4, but it looks like this year is going to eclipse it. So yes, it looks like this will be PS4's biggest year now.

I feel like the PS4's success this year has bubbled under the radar a bit — particularly in the media. To the best of my knowledge, PS4 is up year-over-year in every territory we get regular data for. It's having an amazing year.

This is great news. While I would say the Switch has had the best first-year lineup of any console in a long, long time the PS4 had the best overall library this year and when you factor in all the games it already has, $200 just to get in, or hell even $300 for the upgraded experience, is tremendous value. The PS4 had its best year software wise so it's good to see it reflected in continued strong hardware sales. Not like Sony planned it this way but it needed this year to be as strong as it was because Nintendo brought its 'A' game and I'm sure the Switch will also have a massive holiday. Great time to be a gamer, my favorite year since 2007.

@Rudy_Manchego You’re probably right. Whether this success (and the holiday buying season is just now starting!) was forecasted or not, surely Sony doesn’t want to dampen the hot sales of the PS4 by announcing a next gen console. I, for one, am fine with that.

I am not surprised because it's still the Best 'Games' Console on the Planet And still has LOADS of AMAZING Exclusives coming next year to Well done SONY for doing it again Now SONY get those little Sack-boys and girls making more PS4's ASAP(well in my mind Sack-people make the PS4's)

@get2sammyb Hmm that is true actually, I was wondering if the PS4 price drop will go much further but I think at this price point moving into 2018, it will still sell well. I am of the opinion that at the point that PS4 starts to stall or slow down, we'll be on a 2year (ish) timer to a next gen console but at this rate, Sony would be mad to.

Also with PSVR selling out, and that getting more attention, it makes sense to keep investing in PS4.

Next year, PS4 will have a new God of War, Spider-Man, Detroit, Shadow of the Colossus remastered and maybe Days Gone. The best exclusive line-up by miles.Can't stop PS4, and people like Patcher were saying that consoles are dead, hahaha.

It feels like a lot of the focus this year has been on the Switch and the new XBOX. Because of that, many people just haven't realised how well PlayStation is doing.I've got my Switch for Christmas (can't feckin wait!) , but I'll be playing Uncharted multi-player and HZD right up to Christmas Eve. Loot box drama aside, it really is an amazing time to be a gamer.

I deemed my $320 Slim a bargain when I got it last year (seriously, some big electronics store chains in Belarus still sell it for $500 apiece with a straight face); of course 200 bucks will look evem more appealing. I reckon 70-80 million lifetime sales milestones are as good as in the books at this rate with a couple BF and holiday sales like this.

@Fight_Teza_Fight I played Until Dawn: Rush of Blood today, my first vr game ever, and words can't express how incredible the experience was. For me, it's as if it's a new medium/form of entertainment. The biggest step the video game industry has ever taken since the first video game launched.

So it goes without saying that I'm really glad psvr is doing well. It deserves so. The box that it came in was fantastic, the instructions clear as day and the actual psvr well made. I'm still trying to figure out how to make it less blurry, but other than that I couldn't be happier.